Virgin Australia to suspend Mildura flights

VIRGIN Australia flights in and out of Mildura Airport will be suspended after Friday as COVID-19 continues to weaken travel demand.

The carrier on Wednesday announced 8000 of its 10,000-strong workforce would be temporarily stood down until at least the end of May.

Domestic flights were also set to be cut to just 10 per cent of normal capacity, with the daily return flight between Mildura and Melbourne among the routes halted.

Tigerair Australia flights were to be suspended immediately, bringing the total number of aircraft grounded to 125, the company said.

Virgin had previously reduced services to 50 per cent of normal capacity.

State border closures were among the factors that prompted further cuts.

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Virgin Australia chief executive and managing director Paul Scurrah said the industry was facing the biggest grounding of aircraft in Australia’s history.

“There has never been a travel environment in Australia as restricted as the one we see today and the extraordinary steps we’ve taken have been in response to the federal and state governments’ latest travel advice,” Mr Scurrah said.

“We plan to return Tigerair Australia and Virgin Australia to the skies as soon as its viable to do so, however I am mindful that how we operate today may look different when we get to the other side of this crisis.

“My focus has been on guiding this company through the crisis and at the same time ensure the business is set on a sustainable path when the recovery eventually comes.

“I am only too aware of how much our people are hurting at the moment and these very tough decisions have weighed heavily on me and my leadership team.”

Mildura was among 19 Australian destinations in which all services were suspended.

Those booked to travel between now and June 30 were asked to visit the customer care hub on the Virgin Australia website.